The Blanton–Webster Band

The Blanton-Webster Band
Compilation album by Duke Ellington
Released	1990
Recorded	1939–1942
Genre	jazz Swing Big band music
Length	204:07
Label	Bluebird Records (RCA)
Producer	Steve Becker, Bob Porter
Professional reviews
All Music Guide link Rolling Stone link

The Blanton–Webster Band combines the master takes of all the recordings by Duke Ellington's Orchestra during the years of 1939 to 1942, involving bassist Jimmy Blanton and tenor saxophonist Ben Webster. The recordings were originally made for Columbia and RCA Victor during what many critics regard as the Ellington orchestra's golden period. The three CDs contain many numbers which were to become classics, and the arrangements (by Ellington and Billy Strayhorn) were frequently inventive and innovative. The collection does not include alternative takes or the duets Ellington performed with Jimmy Blanton, available elsewhere. With 66 tracks, the selection includes many of Ellington's hits and classic songs. Rolling Stone praises the collection as "a masterwork of composition and leadership" and "a series of individual triumphs from the greatest team of jazz players...ever assembled".^[1] All Music describes it as "essential for all jazz collections".^[2] The collection was re-organized and rereleased with additional tracks in 2003 as Never No Lament: The Blanton-Webster Band.

Contents 1 Track list 1.1 Disc one 1.2 Disc two 1.3 Disc three 2 Personnel 2.1 Performance 2.2 Production 3 References

Track list

Unless otherwise noted, all tracks by Duke Ellington.

Disc one

1. "You, You Darlin'" (M.K. Jerome, Jack Scholl) – 3:19
2. "Jack the Bear" – 3:15
3. "Ko Ko" – 2:39
4. "Morning Glory" (Ellington, Rex Stewart) – 3:15
5. "So Far, So Good" (Jack Lawrence, Jimmy Mundy, E.G. White) – 2:50
6. "Conga Brava" (Ellington, Juan Tizol) – 2:54
7. "Concerto for Cootie" – 3:19
8. "Me and You" – 2:54
9. "Cotton Tail" – 3:08
10. "Never No Lament (Don't Get Around Much Anymore)" (Ellington, Bob Russell) – 3:15
11. "Dusk" – 3:19
12. "Bojangles" – 2:50
13. "A Portrait of Bert Williams" – 3:09
14. "Blue Goose" – 3:21
15. "Harlem Air Shaft" – 2:57
16. "At a Dixie Roadside Diner" – (Joe Burke, Edgar Leslie) – 2:45
17. "All Too Soon" (Ellington, Carl Sigman) – 3:28
18. "Rumpus in Richmond" – 2:46
19. "My Greatest Mistake" (Jack Fulton), Jack O'Brien) – 3:27
20. "Sepia Panorama" – 3:20
21. "There Shall Be No Night" (Gladys Shelley, Abner Silver) – 3:05
22. "In a Mellow Tone" (Ellington, Milt Gabler) – 3:19

Disc two

1. "Five O'Clock Whistle" (Kim Gannon, Gene Irwin, Josef Myrow) – 3:18
2. "Warm Valley" – 3:20
3. "The Flaming Sword" – 3:06
4. "Across the Track Blues" – 2:58
5. "Chloe" (Gus Kahn, Neil Moret) – 3:24
6. "I Never Felt This Way Before" (Al Dubin, Ellington) – 3:23
7. "The Sidewalks of New York" (Eubie Blake, Charles B. Lawler) – 3:14
8. "Flamingo" (Edmund Anderson, Ted Grouya) – 3:22
9. "The Girl in My Dreams Tries to Look Like You" – 3:19
10. "Take the "A" Train" (Billy Strayhorn) – 2:54
11. "Jumpin' Punkins" – 3:33
12. "John Hardy's Wife" – 3:28
13. "Blue Serge" – 3:20
14. "After All" (Strayhorn) – 3:19
15. "Bakiff" (Tizol) – 3:23
16. "Are You Sticking?" – 3:02
17. "Just A-Sittin' and A-Rockin'" (Ellington, Gaines, Strayhorn) – 3:33
18. "The Giddybug Gallop" – 3:29
19. "Chocolate Shake" (Ellington, Paul Francis Webster) – 2:50
20. "I Got It Bad (And That Ain't Good)" (Ellington, Webster) – 3:17
21. "Clementine" (Strayhorn) – 2:53
22. "Brown-Skin Gal (In the Calico Gown)" (Ellington, Webster) – 3:06

Disc three

1. "Jump for Joy" (Ellington, Sid Kuller, Webster) – 2:50
2. "Moon Over Cuba" (Ellington, Tizol) – 3:09
3. "Five O'Clock Drag" – 2:49
4. "Rocks in My Bed" – 3:06
5. "Bli-Blip" (Ellington, Kuller) – 3:03
6. "Chelsea Bridge" (Strayhorn) – 2:52
7. "Rain Check" (Strayhorn) – 2:28
8. "What Good Would It Do?" (Harry James, Buddy Pepper) – 2:44
9. "I Don't Know What Kind of Blues I Got" – 3:13
10. "Perdido" (Ervin Drake, H.J. Lengsfelder, Tizol) – 3:08
11. "C Jam Blues" (Barney Bigard, Ellington) – 2:37
12. "Moon Mist" – 2:58
13. "What Am I Here For?" (Ellington, Frankie Laine) – 3:28
14. "I Don't Mind" (Ellington, Strayhorn) – 2:49
15. "Someone" – 3:09
16. "My Little Brown Book" (Strayhorn) – 3:13
17. "Main Stem" – 2:47
18. "Johnny Come Lately" (Strayhorn) – 2:39
19. "Hayfoot, Strawfoot" (Drake, Lengsfelder, Paul McGrane) – 2:30
20. "Sentimental Lady" – 2:58
21. "A Slip of the Lip (Can Sink a Ship)" (Ellington, Henderson) – 2:54
22. "Sherman Shuffle" – 2:38

Personnel

Performance

• Ivie Anderson — vocals
• Barney Bigard — clarinet
• Jimmy Blanton — bass
• Lawrence Brown — trombone
• Harry Carney — clarinet, alto sax, baritone sax
• Duke Ellington — piano
• Sonny Greer — drums
• Fred Guy — guitar
• Otto Hardwick — alto sax, baritone sax
• Johnny Hodges — clarinet, alto sax, soprano sax
• Herb Jeffries — vocals
• Wallace Jones — trumpet
• Ray Nance — trumpet, violin, vocals
• Joe Nanton — trombone
• Alvin Raglin — bass
• Junior Raglin — bass
• Rex Stewart — cornet
• Billy Strayhorn — piano
• Juan Tizol — valve trombone
• Ben Webster — tenor sax
• Cootie Williams — trumpet

Production

• Steve Backer – executive producer
• Ed Begley – remastering
• Duke Ellington – arranger
• Bob Porter – reissue producer
• Billy Strayhorn – arranger
• Mary Tucker – liner notes

References